Super: No Trust for State on New Test Standards

Mineola Superintendent Michael Nagler has accused the state of being backwards in its move to replace current educational standards with new national ones dictated by the "Race to the Top" Federal grant education initiative

Thirty-five states have already embraced these new guidelines, with English Language Arts standards set to change this year. But New York has changed its scoring before the new standards were implemented.

In July, the New York State Board of Regents implemented higher standards for both the ELA and math tests by raising the "cut scores" - the grade which determines whether students receive a score of 1 (lowest) to 4 (highest) on the exam. Consequently, test scores dropped dramatically Statewide.

"We're kind of playing 'hit or miss' this year about what we're supposed to teach and ultimately what we're supposed to test our children on," Nagler said Thursday night during the Board of Education's regular meeting at the High School.

"I don't want to say we don't trust the State, but we don't trust the state." The superintendent added that the district is looking at "alternate" ways to test, using a different standard than the state, but he did not elaborate on specifics about what test may be considered.

"All of the research we've conducted shows it was urgent that we not delay," Jane Briggs, spokeswoman for the New York State Education Department said. Briggs stated that an eighth grader scoring right at the old proficiency cut score of 650 in Math has only a one-in-three chance of earning a score on their Math Regents, indicating they are college-ready. Similarly, an eighth grader in a high-needs district scoring a 650 on the English Language Arts exam has only a 50-percent chance of earning a college-ready score on their English Regents. "We needed to act now to let children and their families know whether they are on track for success in college and to signal to teachers and schools when a student is falling behind."